NSA alerts Pathankot airbase of possible aerial attack

Ravi Dhaliwal

Tribune News Service

Pathankot, June 29

The National Security Agency (NSA) has alerted the Pathankot Air Force station of a possible aerial attack which may be carried out by Pakistan-based terror outfits through microlight aircraft, including gliders, and para-motors, following which the authorities have distributed posters asking residents to be cautious of such aerial vehicles.

Sources claim the authorities have gone into an overdrive warning residents of ‘aerial offensive’ after NSA sent alerts claiming that Lashkar-e-Toiba chief Hafiz Saeed may be planning attacks.

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The airbase has been declared a sensitive zone after the January 2 attack in which four militants and seven security personnel were killed. On July 27 last year, three terrorists had laid siege to the police station in the border town of Dinanagar, 25 km from here, before they were gunned down after a 12-hour battle.

Para-motor is a generic name for the propulsive portion of a powered paraglider. It consists of a frame that combines the motor, propeller, harness with integrated seat and a cage. A glider is aerial vehicle that is supported in flight by the dynamic reaction of the air against its lifting surfaces and whose flight does not depend on an engine. Unlike a glider, a para-motor uses an engine to propel its flight.

Sources claim that both these utilities can be used for surveying sensitive areas and also to launch an offensive, giving anxious moments to the authorities.

Scores of posters have been distributed in recent days in localities falling on the periphery of the airbase. These posters show pictures of gliders and have also listed telephone numbers of officials whom to contact if locals spot any such ‘aerial threat’.

Pathankot SSP Rakesh Kaushal said he was in touch with the airbase officials and added that security in and around the city had been tightened.

The police are laying emphasis on villages located near the international border and have also been holding security drills, including flag marches, in these areas.

“We are not taking any risks. Regular meetings are being held with the army, BSF and various intelligence agencies to nullify any such offensive. Security has been tightened on the Pathankot-Jammu-Srinagar National Highway in view of the tourist season,” the SSP said.

After issuing shoot-on-sight orders recently in villages and sub-urban areas located on the periphery of the Pathankot Air Force station, the distribution of posters is being seen as second major decision taken by the airbase officials to counter-check the intentions of terrorists.